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I wish to respond to the article carried in your paper under the above caption, the article by Amrit Muttukumaru. It appears that the gentleman has written without knowledge. That is unpardonable. It is unfortunate that we have over the years used the word "colonization" when we have settled people under the new irrigation schemes.

The word colonies and colonization comes from settlements of British and other European peoples in foreign countries, such as were the settlements in Britain colonies including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa etc., It is an absolute misnomer to refer to the re-settlement of people within our country as 'colonization', unless of course he considers the Eastern Province to have been a foreign country! Yes if it is his contention that traditional Tamil country has been 'colonized' by the State with Sinhalese, he is wrong.

Amrit Muttukumaru is said to be a learned man but a little learning is positively dangerous. He should have done his homework on the subject. He should study the history of Sri Lanka from ancient times before making sweeping statements which display utter ignorance. Muttukumaru is selective when it comes to his version of our history.

He talks of "contemporary history", does he think that history began the day he was born? He obviously does not know of the past history of the Eastern Province (of which he writes) which was very much a part of the Kandyan Kingdom. Robert Knox, was himself arrested in Trincomalee, Muttu should read Knox. I would commend to him not only the reading of Knox but also a book by Donald Ferguson titled "The Earliest Dutch Visits to Ceylon". There are quite a few books which bear testimony to the fact that the Eastern Province was never a 'traditional Tamil homeland'. It was that Rasputian Diksit who misled the Indian government on this.

Muttukumaru refers to the present demography and has the audacity to state "this is not ancient history".

He gives the population figure of 1946 and states that the Sinhalese were only 10% while the Tamil population were 47% and the Moors were 39%, refers to the settlements of Kantale, Padaviya, Morawewa and Galoya all ancient Sinhala areas and states that the Sinhala population was ballooning and that the Tamil population has been severely diluted. He then indulges in another stupid statement by asking the question, "is it fair to ignore all this with a view to diluting the just claims of the Tamils?" He must know that the Eastern Province was Tamilized or colonized (to use his words) by the British in the 19th century, changing its ancient demographic pattern. The province was never a 'traditional Tamil homeland'.

Yes the Eastern Province was never the traditional homeland of the Tamil people. It was peopled by the Sinhalese later by Tamils in the North of the province and subsequently by Muslims in the Trincomalee and Kalmunai areas where they were settled by King Senerath after 1602 consequent to the persecution of Muslims by the Portuguese in the 17th century. As stated earlier there is enough and more reading matter available for Muttukumaru on this period if he only wishes to enlighten himself.

I would also advise Muttukumaru to visit Ampara (incidentally the original name was Angpara meaning in Sinhala the 'road of horns' - this was cattle country; the name has been transformed and Tamilised into Amparai). If he visits Angpara he could see for himself a rock inscription from the period of King Saddatissa which is presently available at the Ang para Kachcheri. This deals with land right during the time of King Saddatissa.

He should also visit places such as Bakkliella and many other places in Wewgampattu to see the remains of Sinhala civilization which existed there before the malarial mosquito wiped out people. Muttukumaru in his ignorance states that (Amparai) was a part of Batticaloa district before 1961 but from when is the question. We presume that history for him begins the day he was born.

There is overwhelming historical, archaeological, anthropological and also literary evidence to prove that the present Eastern Province was inhabited by the Sinhalese for well over 1600 years.

Muttu should read Queyros (hope he has heard of him) of Baldeus or even our own Prof. Karthigesu Indrapalan. I wonder whether Muttu has heard of 'Thiriyaya, Sembumalai, Velgamvehera, Seruvila, Kasimote or Illankathurai, or Kudumbigala, or Buddangala to name but a few archaeological sites in the present Eastern Province.

Incidentally these sites are being vandalized in the LTTE's campaign to erase evidence of Sinhala habitation. Unfortunately for them photographic evidence exists but the 'Appeasement Boys' and the peace at any cost brigade pretend not to know.

This Government will not do a thing about it nor would they seek to send back the internally displaced Sinhalese who are victims of ethnic cleansing in the Eastern Province where they have lived for over half a century in recent times. Almost all our present leaders are Sinhalese only in name.

Other than for Minister Lokubandara and one or two others they do not empathize with the Sinhalese - they will not identify with our culture other than for political reasons.

They do not feel Sinhala so what can we expect? And as for the situation in the Eastern Province - the principal negotiators have not even visited there though they have been to every city in the world, what more needs be said.
- E. de Alwis

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